Tide's Out

Chappaquiddick is a small island just east of Martha's Vineyard. When the tide is out you can drive over, on the beach, south of Edgartown. My father was not at all interested in visiting the site of the "incident", especially given that the incident concerned one wild liberal Senator. So I took myself over, drove right across the sandbar one afternoon in the big woody wagon, and busied myself for a few hours on Chappaquiddick, driving the small roads, sitting on the beach and visiting the bridge.

In fact, I had such a lovely time I paid no attention at all to the time, or the tide, and when I ventured back to the beach for the drive home I found that the path was now under water. There is a ferry that runs from Chappaquiddick to Edgartown but it requires cash and as I was just out wandering, and I was probably 16, I had none with me. My dad answered the phone, curious as to where I had been for the entire afternoon. He was not pleased. He had to drive into town, take the ferry over and then pay for my return passage, and his, on the boat back.

"All of this, really? Of course, sounds just like something ridiculous he would have done. Serves you right chasing after your liberal politics".

Did my dad just compare me to Senator Kennedy? I could not have been more pleased, even if it meant spending the evening in, ruminating over my poor time keeping skills and honing my liberal politics.

Thank you Senator Kennedy.